Sunrise Eyes Incentives To Lure Cigna

August 27, 2002|By Christy McKerney Staff writer

SUNRISE — Two weeks after expressing support for a $250 million downtown project that would require up to $15.8 million in cash incentives to a private developer, Sunrise is considering spending almost half a million dollars to try to lure CIGNA Dental Health of Florida Inc. from neighboring Plantation.

Commissioners are scheduled to discuss the proposal at a 6:30 p.m. meeting tonight at City Hall, 10770 W. Oakland Park Blvd.

The CIGNA deal would cost the city $420,000 in cash over three years in exchange for 420 full-time permanent jobs and a commitment to remain in Sunrise for five years. The incentive would come from more than $2 million in taxpayers' dollars earmarked for economic development.

CIGNA has not made a decision, said Chris Constant, associate director of Cushman & Wakefield of Florida, CIGNA's real estate broker.

"They're looking for the best efficiency and economics," Constant said, adding that Plantation has not offered any incentive.

CIGNA Dental Health of Florida has been based in Plantation for 10 years. It rents space at the executive pavilion of the Fashion Mall on University Drive north of Broward Boulevard.

The mall's new owners have been working with the insurance company to try to persuade CIGNA to continue leasing space at the mall.

"We're trying to keep them as a tenant, but I think it'd be inappropriate to discuss what business terms we're offering," said Thomas J. Valenti, a member of the Syracuse, N.Y.-based Cameron Group, which owns the mall.

The company is looking at moving into a portion of the 230,000-square-foot American Classic Voyages office building in Sunrise's Sawgrass Corporate Park at Northwest Eighth Street and the Sawgrass Corporate Parkway. The cruise line never moved into the building after filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy last year.

Sunrise has been aggressive about offering cash incentives to lure corporate headquarters to its west Sunrise corporate parks, imposing strict limitations on how many jobs and how long the company stays before it pays out.

Christy McKerney can be reached at cmckerney@sun-sentinel.com or 954-572-2008.